Well here is the punch line:
The client kicks the consultant out (ofcourse, with a whack on his head!!@#**??). It jolts the "structure" of structured thinking mechanism. Now that he is "loose", he discovers a multitude of creative solutions.
Happy ending !
USA
Possibly a nice note saying:
Thank you for the gift of this nice car. Could you please leave the keys so I don't have to hire a locksmith to get me into my new car so I can drive it away?
USA
A clear contract has been established here. A "guaranteed" parking space is paid for but not received. Put the building management on written notice to this effect.
The building management company may in fact be a different organization then the building owner. The management company is not properly taking care of the facilities if this is happening on a regular basis and not corrected.
Put a sign at his parking spot that offending vehicles will be immobilized with
a "Boot."
Then place a "Boot" on a tire so that the offending vehicle can not be moved. Leave no information on how to locate the owner of the parking spot to remove the "Boot." At some point in time the building management will be contacted about the situation and they will then most likely contact your friend. Of course your friend could be unavailable for several days time.
He can then advise the building management again on their lack of management capability and not providing him with what is called for in their contract.
Continue until situation is corrected.
USA
1. Find one of those "Warning, Severe Tire Damage" signs
2. Have the police do a search on the license plate... then send "jerk" or "jerkette" a bill each month for usage.
3. Leave a note saying "Thanks alot... my 6 year old daughter with polio was forced to walk down 7 flights of stairs."
USA
Do you really want an answer or are you probing the dark side of creativity?
Before re-acting consider management as the jerk, or, at least, as jerk enablers; inadvertent, business friend or not. While they are avoiding responsibility, why not park anywhere. Ask management what they would do if you double parked behind subject vehicle.
USA
Let's test our creative juices and see how many ideas we might collectively generate in the next few days.
A note under the wiper that says:
You parked your car in the spot that I'm paying for. While i didn't put any sugar in your gas tank this time, I may not be as nice if you EVER park here again.
attached to the note are a couple of those little sugars that they give away in restaurants.
USA
Park in the space reserved for the management of the parking structure or building owners. Then your friend calls the management office and mentions that he will continue parking there until something is done about his "space".
One of my co-workers tried this technique. He had his space cleared in approx. 15 min. Then the co-worker moved his car from the management's space and parked in his assigned space.
USA
A friend of mine pays $124 a month for a reserved parking spot in his high-rise office building's parking garage. The building belongs to a major corporation (name not to be released at this time).
2 or 3 times a week some "jerk" or "jerkette" parks in his spot
The management of the parking structure claims they can not tow cars out, physically not possible.
Snip..
Find out if it really CAN be towed! Let the air out of ALL four tires (without damaging the tires). Just let the air out if the valve stems. At minimum, maybe they will get the message not to park there. Especially if it happens 2 or 3 times a week.
USA
Assuming the friend pays his $124 for a specific spot, and that there is a written agreement, the friend has a valid lease for this spot of real estate.
Court possibilities are several: Trespassing (criminal trespassing is a possibility), injunction to prevent loss of "quiet enjoyment" (a property law term meaning you get to use your land for your purposes, absent encroachment from anyone else, including the landlord; benefit: large monetary fines for violating the injunction), charging a valid fee for the use (what would a valid fee be? Whatever it costs for the friend to get as easy access to his office -- taxi fares, parking fees for the choice spot for the car, etc.).
It's clear that your friend doesn't want to unduly irritate his client, the building owner, and that closes off some postential solutions. Landlord's failure to act to protect the parking right is probably a violation of the underlying lease; if you friend were handicapped in any way, it might be a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
I suggest a nice note, to be followed up with meaner notes -- probably should seek some advice from a lawyer to make sure no threats are made.
But if it doesn't stop, then there is a land possessor's right to self help.
Deflate all four tires on the offending car, and demand the parking garage attendant notify you when the offender calls for AAA (or whoever would inflate the tires). In the garage where I park, attendants have a long hose and a 55-gallon barrel. If a car is parked illegally, they roll the empty-and- therefore-light barrell immediately in back of the car, and then they fill it with water. If the offender shows up and makes things right, they pull the plug on the barrel and let 55 gallons of water drain out, then roll it away.
I know of more than a few large office leases in Dallas that were broken when the building management failed to protect reserved parking spaces. Parking spaces are serious business here. The cavalier attitude of the parking garage management puzzles me.
Australia
Ten simple Retaliations:
(a) Park behind the car park thief to impede his exit. (b) Put some stones inside his hubcaps, so they rattle. (c) Draw some personalised "THIEF" signs, and tape them over his plates. (d) Earth his car to a nearby metal fixture. This flattens batteries. (e) Remove his hubcaps all together, placing them under his car (f) Deflate all his tyres
(g) Insert a standard large potato / orange in his exhaust. (h) Wet the ground outside his driver's side door, so he steps in it (i) Park so close to his driver's side he cannot get into his vehicle (j) Wire his bumper to a fixture on the wall of the car park.
NB. 101 new uses for a tyre lever have been deleted on legal advice.
USA
2 or 3 times a week some "jerk" or "jerkette" parks in his spot...
You didn't actually say it was always the same person taking the space...It sounded to me like more than one "jerk/jerkette" if it's a chronic problem. So if it's not the same car all the time, nasty notes will be a waste of his time.
1. Your friend could leave an orange cone in front of his space. Pain in the butt to move all the time, but it looks like the offenders are in search of the *easiest* parking space, so it might help.
2. Even if management can't tow, they COULD "boot" the car (device that locks onto one wheel, preventing movement of the car until it's unlocked and removed) and they could charge a fine (which could be high enough to cover the expense of the employee to do this job).
Netherlands
At 16:01 17-7-98 -0600, you wrote:
A friend of mine pays $124 a month for a reserved parking spot in his high-rise office building's parking garage. The building belongs to a major corporation (name not to be released at this time). 2 or 3 times a week some "jerk" or "jerkette" parks in his spot
In Holland there are private parking spots that have something with a lock (a small gate ...) so only the owner of the key can use the spot.
Denmark
I would ask me especially the following questions:
# 2 or 3 times a week "somebody" parks in his spot # exercise of thinking
#
1 other/alternative parking spots
2 parking spot is filled (before the unknown user comes)
3 parking spot seems to be unusable
4 why does the unknown user parked on this place ? 5 why does the unknown user will never parker there ? (What's can be changed ?)
6 variants of unpleasant neighbours on the box: 7 kind of negotiation with the owner of the park building 8 the unknown can park, but no drive away, variants: 9 there parking every time also a lot of other people 10 speaking with the unknown
11 "tow cars out is impossible" ?
Any of this questions create new details/directions for new questions and must not be used.
Do you want now to read the few answers or will you create your own answers to the questions above ?
Here are samples of answers / hints / new start ideas:
other/alternative parking spots
parking space of the unknown: where parked he some weeks ago ? using parking space from the owner of the building
parking spot is filled (before the unknown user comes)
start earlier in the morning to help one of the workmates
parking spot seems to be unusable
there stands now the dustbin
some days there is a scaffolding
parking bicykle on that place
why does the unknown user parked on this place ? one of the few empty places,
its near to the exit
he knows the tenant (correct user) and will provoke them he reads the posters near this place (advertising pillar) he waits there regular of friends
can we ask him (who can ?) ?
the place has good lighting and he reads every morning the paper
why does the unknown user will never park there ? (What's can be
changed ?)
a poster: this place will be financed for poor man prints of a walking cat on the car
now he meets somebody near another parking box he want to show that he can afford an expensive place
variants of unpleasant neighbours on the box: besides the car lies a screwdriver and typical tool for break in muddy jeep-car ofter standing besides
two boxes besides it seems (!) the mirror was stolen
kind of negotiation with the owner of the park building get another box
get the charge for other parking
ten minutes before next visit of the client put up one of his posters with
advertising for hot dogs in a little part of this poster (if he take a joke, a comparison with unknown parking)
the unknown can park, but no drive away, variants: wire rope and lock on the car
narrow to open the door from the car
there parking every time also a lot of other people allows an owner of a shop near this place to use this box until eight o clock every morning
the tenant itself uses several times a hire car
speaking with the unknown
if you use this place, can I also get the key for the car ? will you share the place with me on odd days ?
"tow cars out is impossible" ?
ask the breakdown service with telephone
the box numbers around +/- five numbers are shifted by one put up poster over the car: this car to be sell
Netherlands
The car parking reminds me of the modern cowshed in The Netherlands. Milking cows are now 'computerised' with a chip in a leather necklace. The chip is unique for each cow.
If the cow likes to eat in the stable, she puts her head in the automatic feeder. The exact portion of food for her is released (indicated and transferred by the chip). There will only be food released when the cow is recognised by the food computer if she should be eating and hungry. If the cow tries to get food a second time, the computer refuses to release food.
The daily quantity of food is in optimal balance with her also computer- registered milk production and -quality. The whole feeding systen in the cowshed (where cows are free to walk) has introduced some nice social behaviour to observe.
Why this story?
If cars are fitted with a chip (maybe instead of the numberplate) better control is possible. If an unauthorized car is parked at a specific place, automatically an amount of money is distrected from the bank account of the owner. This amount could be the year's rent. Such a system will work. Another way is that some barrier in front of the parking place will not be removed when an unauthorized ('chipped') car tries to enter.
USA
1. Quite paying the fee and park somewhere else. 2. Contact the owner of the cars parked in his/her
space pointing out that they are parking in a reserved space (he may add, "...and their car may be towed if it continues.)
3. Take an ice pick to their tires (except that
that creates some awfully ugly karma that will have to be worked out!)
This is just for openers.
USA
Ideas/Springboards:
Wish I were sure the space usurpers knew it was not an open space (is it marked?)
Wish "proper" owner could wait for usurper and express condolences for whatever made him/her take over a paid-for space
Owner of space pays for a barrier (get landlord to pay?) which he can open with a key or code.
How to pay a homeless person/student/other to sit by the space and explain to anyone using the space (other than owner) that this space is taken already. They then could helpfully tell the individual where an open space is.
Have the attendant charge extra for anyone who used a wrong space
Leave a note offering to split the monthly fee with the usurper
Thought: I noticed how quickly the ideas from the list became punishing. This surprised me. Is it because there's a perception of someone being right and another being wrong?
USA
1. Train pigeons, skunks, or dogs to only "attack" cars with bad
guy's license plate.
2. Add lines to the parking spots so that only very skinny cars can
park there (if applicable).
3. Add a phony parking meter.
4. Do something so that parking spot becomes unappealing. For
example, plant a cherry blossom tree so that it sheds all over any car parked there. Or, repaint or repave the walkway and signs so that parking there becomes the "long way" into the building.
USA
I may have missed it, but has anyone suggested waiting for the offender and simply talking to him/her? A lot of the solutions so far are indeed sort of assumptive and punitive. Even if the person is a jerk, a jerk can be made to be more mindful of their jerkiness and, sometimes, behaviour can be modified.
The problem may be the result of a simple mis-understanding re: the rules of the lot. We really don't know why they are doing what they are doing.
If I had a chance to speak with the offender I would approach the conversation in this manner. I would introduce myself and be as cheerful as possible, perhaps present my biz card that would establish me as a building tennant. I would then ask for their help with something. Then, I would ask "dumb" questions. Casually, not Dragnet style: Do you work here? How do the lot rules work? Did you know that this was a reserved spot? If it turns out the person is under a misunderstanding, I would explain, forgive, and thank them. If they are indeed jerk/jerkette types, (they get it but are ignoring it) I would simply thank them for their future cooperation on the matter, and be on my way, hoping for the best.
USA
I am writing to give you a quick perspective on the parking issue being discussed on the list. I have been in a similar circumstance several times during the last year. I tried several methods and have met with varying degrees of success. What makes me laugh about the situation is the response I received when I called the management office. (Typically I don't call them, I just handle the problem in whatever I think is the best manner at the time.) The owner listened and empathized, but I knew he wasn't going to do anything. All of a sudden I smiled. The parking issue, which had been a source of aggravation to me, wasn't on anyone else's radar screen. It was blown out of proportion in my mind. I gave it free space in my head - and for what? What finally changed was my attitude. Management won't change, and the people parking in the space often don't have a better option. None of the offenders I spoke with ever meant to inconvenience me, they either parked there in error or were desparate for a place to park. Once I became aware of the other people's perspectives I realized this will happen on occasion. I can't prevent it. What I can do is try another lot or take public transportation or I suppose I could move or ride my bike or find a new job, etc. Point being the only change I will see is in terms of my reaction.
USA
Hey, playing is what it's all about. Going the opposite direction. Maybe we should get a really cool fruit basket and put it on a pedestal next to the parking slot. A gift for the offender. Induce guilt.
Or...how about playing a recording of a brass band to the person who pulls in -- playing something like John Phillips Sousa, very loud.
Ghee whiz! Just ask the jerk or jerkette.
All kidding aside that may very well be all that is needed.
Except in my friend's busy day waiting around for hours or using up hours of time coming down from the 18th floor to check to see if the car is still there and then waiting could be very time consuming.
My purpose was to challenge the wide-range of creativeness represented by the members of the various lists I sent the challenge to initially on Friday and then again as this week's Creativity Challenge.
Out of the 74 ideas so far the majority are punishing, a coupld are straight-forward and one, yours doesn't see it as a problem but more as a misunderstanding.
USA
1) Let a homeless person live there
2) A remotely activated "A-frame" pops up from a structure that the car rides over (clears).
3) Drive over a self locking device that only the owner can unlock. 4) Wrong car activates flashing lights, camera, life threatening warnings, loud music and nasty commercials
5) Warning says "The mob boss parks here" 6) Wrong car triggers alarm and calls wrecker service. 7) Real parking meter to collect money ? 8) Warning about high voltage electronic disabling system 9) Install a dummy camera
10) Install a real camera and monitor it from the office 11) Carry collapsing traffic cones in the luggage compartment. Place it when you leave.
12) Friction- less rollers at the entry keeps the front wheels running. Owner locks them to go in and out.
USA
Lots of good and interesting ideas on this challenge.
I have a real situation from several years back. Our office had a private parking lot that was only two blocks away from the main university campus. Cheap parking spots were tough to find. If you could get away with it, ours was free - no attendant, no meters, no gate. It was a real nuisance dealing with those daring parkers who invaded our lot. We had no tigers at the gate. Even though the parking lot owner painted a sign that said "unauthorized vehicles will be towed at (vehicle) owner expense" the lot owners wouldn't actually tow because: 1. they didn't really care because they got paid for the space anyway, and 2. they said they didn't want to get sued for damage to a towed vehicle.
One thing we did try, with the lot owners help, that at least got the habitual problem parkers to go away was pasting a sticker on their car window that said something to the effect that "they" were unauthorized parkers in a private parking lot. The tone was nasty as I recall. Wording the sticker message could be fun if this approach were to be tried. The stickers were about postcard size, or slightly larger, and had a substance that made them very hard to remove. They were placed on the driver side window. I'm sure the problem never would have been solved as our lot was in the open and quite visible to drivers, and especially university students desperate for a parking space and late for class. We moved to another location and no longer have our own parking lot.
Another message that gets my attention is one that says "Unless you are so-and-so, don't even _think_ about parking here (somewhat on the order of 'the mob boss parks here')."
USA
"The spaces are clearly marked:
a. specific tenant name
b. visitor
c. reserved
d. open"
i'd try this: i'd paint the wall of the space by each car with a description of the car the space owner drives. i.e.
i think a 'match up' sign would help keep the spaces more available to the people who paid for them. i would like it if the borders of these signs could be painted with interesting patterns.
a. invite spray paint artists to do individual spaces .. provide the paint b. invite someone to paint the borders ( the landlord might want to invite artists from local schools .. )
c. or hire a person to stencil a plain colored border
.. then have a media event gallery opening. (get big points for your business' support of the arts) have it in the parking lot (of course no parking in it at the party .. need to see the art and have room for the food tables.
the borders would be the fun part but it would be most important to have a physical description of the car as the prominate feature. the goal is to have the non-renter realize their car does not match the description on the 'in your face' (nicely) sign on the space.
Netherlands
Over 100 ideas have been put forward in only a couple of days. I guess that most ideas has cam up in the various minds 'intuatively', without much structured creativity. I will try to give some clues for structured creativity (step 6 of 'meandering': consider underlying causes and principles). This technique is simmilar to the conept fan of Edward de Bono (explained in several books of him). He gives the example of "How to deal with a shortage of drinking water". In our car parking challenge, we have the problem: "How to deal with a shortage of parking lots". In fact, very simmilar concepts can be formulated:
lack of enough parking lots
reduce demand increase supply do it without regulation
(number of potential cars) (parking lots)
educating punishment e.g. car pooling
users go by bike e.g. timetable
stimulate use of create other
other lots lots
I hope the above scheme will do. It is not complete, many branches can be added, and finally an enormous amount of ideas could be generated at each end of a branch.
My impression is that most of the proposed ideas to Alan's challenge are found in 'punishment' and 'education'. Maybe Alan could sort the ideas, according to this scheme.
© 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006 Robert Alan Black, Ph.D. CSP